NEWS

TURKEY New madrasa controversy at Hagia Sophia

Following the Ministry of Culture’s announcement of a tender for the construction of a madrasa in the courtyard of Hagia Sophia, The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has declared that the Hagia Sophia’s status as “World Heritage Site” will be reassessed if the madrasa is built.
ARMENIA A Karabakh success story

Artak Beglaryan, who during the Karabakh War, at the age of six, lost his sight when a landmine they played with in their back garden exploded and also lost his father at the same war, did not give up, and has today become the press secretary of the Prime Minister of Karabakh.
DIASPORA Three great massacres and the heritage that could not be shared: Armenian orphans

The third guest of The History Foundation’s Thursday Talks series titled ‘Deportation-Massacre-Genocide 1915-2015’ was Assistant Professor Nazan Maksudyan, Head of the Department of Social Sciences at Istanbul Kemerburgaz University. Maksudyan held a speech titled ‘Three Generations, Three Massacres: Armenian Children and Orphans from 1895 to 1915’ and we had the chance to talk to her about the perception of children during the Ottoman period, and the conditions and political roles of Armenian orphans.
MINORITIES ‘Quota teacher’ ordeal at Greek schools

Teachers that have come to Turkey from Greece, although their salaries are being paid, cannot attend class because the Istanbul Directorate of National Education has not issued the necessary permission. Istanbul Deputy Director of National Education Murat Altınöz, on the other hand, states that the procedure for the solution of the problem has been completed.
PRESS This is the best response to those who say ‘Armenians should bring out their documents’

Zakarya Mildanoğlu’s book ‘Armenian Periodicals 1794-2000’ has been published by Aras Yayıncılık. Mildanoğlu’s work brings together around 3650 Armenian periodicals from the year 1794, when the first Armenian newspaper Aztarar was published, until the year 2000. We talked with Zakarya Mildanoğlu about his book which is the product of around 30 years of work, and the over 200 year history of Armenian periodicals.
WORLD Pope’s team rejects Azerbaijan

The teams San Lorenzo in Argentina, and Penarol in Uruguay rejected Azerbaijan’s offer, stating, “Money is not everything”. The common characteristic of the two teams is the broad support they enjoy among the Armenian population in the two countries.
MINORITIES List of seized Osmaniye properties published

A historical document included in an article by Ümit Kurt titled “I. Cihan Harbi Sonrası Ermeni Mallarının İadesi: Cebel-i Bereket Örneği/The Return of Armenian Properties After World War I: The Cebel-i Bereket Case” published in the November issue of the journal Toplumsal Tarih is striking in terms of its content.
ENGLİSH Colonel Takvoryan’s portrait disappears

Lebanese director Nigol Bezjian’s installation titled ‘Çanakayna’ at the 4th Çanakkale Biennial that began on September 27 suffered a mysterious attack last Tuesday. Biennial staff think this may have been a case of theft, while Bezjian, who included photographs of Armenian soldiers that served in the army from the Ottoman period to the present day, treats the case with suspicion.